Yasujirō Ozu

Who was Yasujirō Ozu?

Yasujirō Ozu was a Japanese film director and screenwriter. He began his career during the era of silent films. Ozu made fifty-three films: twenty-six in his first five years as a director, and all but three for the Shochiku studio. Ozu first made a number of short comedies, before turning to more serious themes in the 1930s.

Marriage and family, especially the relationships between the generations, are among the themes in his work. His outstanding works include Late Spring, Early Summer, Tokyo Story, and Floating Weeds. He made great use of elipsis, where many events are not depicted visually, and he also used a style of cinematography in which the camera rarely moves and is usually positioned below the eye level of the actors.

His reputation has continued to grow since his death, and he is widely regarded as one of the world's most influential directors.